Spirit of the Wild
by LatteLady17
Summary: First story! This is a story about how Princess Zelda was given a second chance to fight against the Calamity. But, there's a twist! She's been transformed into a fox! How is she going to save Hyrule now? With the help of some old friends and unlikely heroes of course!


Prologue

Let me tell you a story that has been passed down in Hyrule through countless generations. It is a story about the last of the Royal blood and her loyal companions' fight for a country that was thought to be lost.

You see… the time in which this tale first takes place was a dark and uncertain time in Hyrule's history. The Dark Beast, or much widely feared as Calamity Ganon, was prophesized to rise once again from his 10,000-year slumber. Drastic preparations were called for by the Royal Family. The trusted advisors to the Royal Family, known as the Skeikah, suggested their ancestors' ancient technology that was successfully used against the beast long ago. The Royals agreed and ordered excavations across the land. Countless mechanical "Guardians" were found along with enormous beings called Divine Beasts. Four skilled individuals, dubbed Champions, were then selected to pilot the mechanical wonders during battle. Their leader was the Princess of Hyrule along with her appointed knight. Upon his back, the knight carried the Sword that Sealed the Darkness, the sign of a true hero. It seemed as if a successful battle against the Calamity was all but imminent. The people rejoiced across the kingdom.

However, there were some that were uneasy. Those within the palace walls knew of the Princess's secret. She was unable to use the sacred sealing power which was her birthright. Ganon was much too powerful to fully destroy. The only option was to seal him far beneath the earth. The Princess knew of her weakness from the very beginning. Countless hours of spiritual training and praying revealed nothing to her. All female members of the Royal Family before her were able to use their powers, but not her. Many began to doubt her worth and voiced their concerns to the King. He had the same fears but was unable to do anything. The Princess felt the disappointed eyes upon her causing a spiral into a feeling of hopelessness. Those once close to her had distanced themselves. Even her own father feared the worst. Researching the ancient Sheikah technology was the one thing that seemed to ease her mind. She firmly believed that this was the only way she was going to be of any use on the battlefield.

On the day in which the beast awoke, havoc broke out. Ganon was more strategic this time and was not about to be defeated by the same tactics as before. He appeared from deep within Hyrule Castle taking over control of all the Guardians and Divine Beasts. The next event that occurred was nothing short of a slaughter. The Guardians hunted down and destroyed anything within their path. The Champions, although trapped within the Divine Beasts, fought valiantly against their own foes during their last stand. Fearing for the safety of the Princess, the knight fled with her far to the southeast. The Guardians continued their untiring pursuit after the two. The Princess and her knight were eventually cut off and surrounded. The knight was not going to give up easily. He was able to single handily defeat a few of the mechanical destroyers, but it was to no avail. He was now severely injured with all his energy spent. A Guardian was only inches away from the two with its sights locked, ready to douse the last of the light. Not wanting her beloved knight to die, the Princess suddenly stepped in front of him with her hand raised. A blinding flash of light and energy cut through the forest destroying the remaining Guardians. Her sealing powers had finally awoken! However, the knight succumbed to his injuries. Knowing there was a still a chance to save him, the knight was placed in the care of two Skeikah that had arrived to help. From there, the Princess journeyed back to the castle to face Calamity Ganon alone.

Many believed that the Princess met her own demise that fateful day. Others believed that she sealed herself along with the beast within the confines of the castle. Hoping to prevent him from causing any more destruction. A century passed, causing the events and the lives lost to fade with time. Thus, ending the first part of my tale. However… a new power was about to awaken. One that would forever change the course of Hyrule's future.

Chapter 1

Light and dark

It was dark, darker than a moonless night. The vast void in which Princess Zelda's conscious inhabited was what she compared to as death. Nothing changed. Everything was silent. The only other presence she could feel was that of Ganon. His aura felt cold and sinister, as if it had a mind of its own. How long had she been here? She honestly didn't know. It felt like only a short time ago she watched Link give his life to save hers. Was he taken to the Shrine of Resurrection in time? According to the spirit within the Master Sword, there was still a chance he could be saved. But, that was only a chance. For all she knew, Robbie and Purah could have been attacked by more Guardians on their way to the Shrine. Zelda could feel the familiar pain radiate through her conscious. If it wasn't for her, none of this would have happened! She had been utterly useless! Her father, her friends, and her people had all lost their lives just because she couldn't use her powers! The sudden rise in Ganon's aura reminded the Princess to keep her emotions in check. Any negative thoughts or feelings only fed into his power. Calming down, she checked his aura again. Only, it felt…odd. It didn't shift or grow it just flickered, as if responding to something. Then she felt it. What was this sensation? It felt like the rays of the sun were cutting through the inky darkness. Everything felt lighter! Wait…was that a voice?!

"My, child." The voice rang out clear like a bell. "The time has come for you to fight for Hyrule's future. The hero has awakened, join with him. Drive back the darkness and usher in the light. Now, open your eyes…"

Zelda's senses were all overwhelmed at once. She could feel the dampness of the air and cold stone beneath her. The smell of decay that blanketed the area was almost overwhelming. Closing her eyes, she tried to steady herself. "Have I returned to the real world?" Slowly she opened her eyes to allow them to adjust to the dim lighting and caught the sight of…paws?!

"Wha-What's going on?! What is this?! The Princess frantically called out. "This isn't my body!" No longer Hylian, the Princess of Hyrule now inhabited the body of a fox. Her fur color was that of a golden orange that gave off its own glow. The black on her front legs followed a pattern that made her look like she was wearing fingerless gloves. She lowered her ears in confusion. "This just doesn't make sense! Why do I…" A sudden grotesque sound echoed throughout the walls of the Sanctum. Looking above her at the vaulted ceiling caused her stomach to knot in fear. "Ganon…" the name passed through her lips as a whisper. The vile creature had formed a large cocoon-like structure around himself that beat and pulsated like a heart. The sound was almost too much to bear. It was something that Zelda had never heard before and prayed to never hear again.

"Do not fear the beast. He is still bound."

The sound of the voice caused the Princess to jump. "Who's there?!" The owner of the voice ignored the question.

"Please, you must hurry. Find the hero before it's too late."

"The hero? Do you mean Link?" Zelda called out to the voice.

"Hurry…your…power… will…soon…fade…"

"My power? What do you mean? My sealing powers? Wait don't go!" Zelda called as she frantically raced around the room. "Please tell me more! Why am I here?! Why do I look like this?!" The next thing Zelda knew was that she was now standing in a different room.

"…Hurry…" was all the voice said before it faded within the castle's stone walls.

The Princess looked around the room in a panic. What was going on? Who had been speaking to her? As she gazed about the chamber she realized where she finally was.

"This is my…room." Or what was left of it. The outside wall had caved in during the battle. Leaves and other kinds of debris littered the floor while cob webs decorated the corners of the ceiling. Books and other personal items were strewn across the ground.

"Why was I taken here?" She thought as she went over to the small desk in the corner. It was shocking to see how the desk and the items placed upon it were still intact. A blue and gold book laying with its pages open caught her attention.

"My diary! How on earth did it survive?" She raised up on her hind legs and placed her front paws on the desk to get a better look. The last page that had been written was… the day of the Calamity. Zelda read through its contents and immediately had flashbacks of that awful day. If only she had been useful… She lowered herself to the ground and saw another book. It was navy blue with the Hylian Royal Crest gold-plated on both covers. It was laying with its spine up, so she couldn't see its contents. She flipped it over and was amazed.

"These are my research notes! I thought these were gone for good!" A couple of days before she and Link left for Mt. Lanayru, her father had come into her room while she was studying. He scolded her for not practicing her magic and took the book with him before he left. She looked through the pages. There were countless notes and drawings she had composed herself throughout the time she studied the Guardians.

"This could really come in handy", she noted as she searched for something to carry it in. Without actual hands this was going to be a pain. She was not about to carry the thing in her mouth! She went over to her broken down dresser and searched inside. Among the dirt and spiders, she found one of her leather pouches with a long strap. She placed the book inside and walked out toward the opening in the side wall. Stopping for a moment, she thought about the diary. What good would that thing possibly do? It held nothing useful within in its pages except bad memories. She shook her head and went back for it. As soon as she placed it in her bag, she heard a low growl. Tensing up, she slowly turned her head to see a Red Moblin behind the doors to her room! Her eyes grew wide in fright. Had it seen her? It didn't seem like it. Quietly, Zelda made her way to the wall's opening. She was only a few inches away when she heard something snap beneath her feet. The Moblin roared and burst through the doors thrashing about with its spear. Terrified, Zelda began to run but got her legs tangled beneath her. She fell from the wall's opening down onto the stone walkway below. The impact knocked the air out of lungs leaving her immobilized for a moment. The Moblin, seeing its prey had fled jumped down in pursuit. The Princess scrambled to her feet and raced down the walkway. She was much faster than the monster, but another sight stopped her dead in her tracks. Two more Moblins were waiting for her at the end of the staircase! These two were a type she had never seen before. They were mostly white but with purple markings that snaked around the entirety of their bodies. Their red eyes glowed with malicious intent while saliva ran down their jaws. The third Moblin was catching up fast. In a split-second decision, Zelda jumped the side of the walkway to the ground below. The Moblins were angry now. Their dinner was getting away! The Princess ran past a small pool of water that once was a koi pond. She knew the area meaning that there was another bridge up ahead she could cross. She was a few feet from the bridge when she heard a swishing sound then an explosion. Apparently, the Moblins had given up on their hunt and had decided to just blow up the pest. Poor marksmanship on their part allowed for the bomb arrow to go off a safe distance away from Zelda but the shockwave sent her sprawling through the air. She landed in the fast-flowing river that formed from within the castle. Rocks and pieces of the bridge landed in the water causing huge splashes that pulled her underneath the water. Desperately, she tried to grab onto the bank before she was washed away. The current was too strong for her as she lost her grip and was swept down over the waterfall.

Regaining consciousness, Zelda found that she had been taken down river to the shore of the moat opposite from the castle. Above her was a small cliff with on of the pillars Ganon had created to control the Guardians. Shaking the water from her fur and hopefully the headache from her head, she checked her bag. The two books were thankfully still inside. The water shouldn't have affected them too much. The ink she had used was special in which it wouldn't run if it came into contact with water. The pages on the other hand she wasn't so sure about. They had looked awfully brittle. The Princess shoved this in the back of her mind. She didn't have time to worry about such things! She needed to find help and more importantly locate Link. If he was alive, like the voice had been saying, then he should be making his way off the Great Plateau. The tricky part was finding him. She looked up at the cliff. It didn't seem too steep to climb. Finding her footing, the Princess slowly made her way up. Reaching the top made her gasp. All around her was black and purple liquid that moved in a similar fashion to Ganon's cocoon. Remembering this as Malice, Zelda gave it a wide berth as she walked down a path. Destroyed buildings and structures met her as she came to the path's end. Her legs felt like they were about to give out beneath her.

"N-No!" She cried out in tears. She hadn't noticed the destruction before, but the ruins she now stood in had been the once vibrant Castle Town. She had loved all the shops and not to mention the people that ran them. When the people within the castle would get her down, she would come here to relax. All the townspeople had adored her. She was their Princess and they loved her for it. Now they were gone. All that was left was the shell of a former town. Tears were falling as Zelda walked through the ghost town. If only…! She stopped and jumped behind a crumbling wall. In front of her was a Stalker Guardian!

"How is that thing still running?" She thought to herself as she carefully peered out from behind the wall. The machine had detected the slight movement and focused its laser right on her! The Princess shut her eyes tightly. Maybe she could call forth her powers again. She focused but felt nothing! The Guardian was right on top of her hiding place now with its red beam still focused. Zelda accepted her fate. How fitting, she thought, she was utterly useless before and now she blew her second chance. She waited for the searing pain but… it never came. The Guardian stalked off and went back to its original position.

"How…it saw me! Why didn't it fire?" Zelda thought as she eyed the Guardian to make her escape. She ran the rest of the way to the exit of Castle Town. The sun had now begun to set bathing everything in a golden light. Stopping to catch her breath, she began to plot out her next move.

"I have to get to Kakariko. That is the only place I can get some answers. I just hope Impa is still there." A nearby wolf howling sent a chill down her spine. Urging herself forward, she disappeared into the trees.

Inside the Castle's Sanctum, another being had awoken. Only this one was not a creature of light. It was born of the Malice that had slowly been taking over the castle. The Malice took shape revealing that of a large brown wolf. He was at least twice the size of a normal specimen of his species. Three Malice spikes protruded from his muscular right shoulder while an enormous yellow eye closed on his left. The only reason he was brought into this world was to hunt down and destroy the being that kept his creator bound. The wolf snarled in anger before disappearing into the darkness.

9


End file.
